This application claims the priority of German Patent Document 198 39 166.8 filed Aug. 28, 1998, and PCT/EP999/05569 filed Aug. 3, 1999, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a lounger bed with an adjustable lying surface which consists of a frame with transverse spars and buckling longitudinal spars and of a textile structure, particularly consisting of elastic threads, which is clamped in at least at the longitudinal spars.
Chairs or lounge chairs are known (German Patent Document DE 44 26 316 C1), in the case of which the sitting or the backrest surface is formed of a textile cover which is, in each case, shaped at its edges to form a loop and is pushed by means of these loops onto rod-type spanners which, in turn, are screwed to longitudinal spars of the chair frame. This further development permits the removal of the cover from the frame, for example, for the purpose of cleaning.
Loungers are also known in the case of which the cover is placed by means of loops at its edges directly around longitudinal spars of the frame. Such covers cannot easily be removed for the purpose of cleaning.
A lounger bed of the initially mentioned type was suggested by the applicant""s Patent Application 198 07 741.6, in the case of which the textile structure to be used as the lying surface is equipped with elastic threads and, for replacing previously known bed frames, can be tensioned to different degrees in different sections between the transverse spars. The fastening of the covering fabric by means of loops on the longitudinal spars or the like cannot be used for such cases.
It is an object of the present invention to develop the covering frame for a lounger bed of the initially mentioned type such that a simple holding possibility is provided for the edges of the textile structure forming the lying surface and a possibility is provided to tension this textile structure to different degrees in different sections.
For achieving this object, it is provided in the case of a lounger bed of the initially mentioned type that the longitudinal spars and preferably also the transverse spars consist of profile strips with a curved top side, the textile structure reaching over this top side, in that the curving of the top side slopes down toward the interior of the frame and, only in the exterior area of the frame, supporting surfaces are formed for the textile structure whose edge is introduced into receiving grooves on the exterior side of the profile strips and is held there.
By means of this further development, it is, on the one hand, possible to form very stable longitudinal spars or transverse spars which are particularly necessary if the textile structure is provided with elastic threads and is clamped in between the parallel extending longitudinal spars and transverse spars while considerable restoring forces are exercised. However, the new further development also offers the advantage that, because of the supporting surfaces provided in the exterior area of the frame, the elastic supporting surface takes up almost the full frame surface, so that a very large laying surface is achieved. Because no frame is visible on the surface and the textile structure is pulled over the surface of the frame, the new further development also results in a very aesthetic appearance. Finally, the clamping-in operation can also be carried out in a simple manner, even if, in sections distributed along the length of the longitudinal spars, the textile structure is to be tensioned to different degrees.
As a further development of the invention, the receiving grooves are arranged at a distance, that is as small as possible, from the plane of the lying surface, and it is provided that the hinge axes for the buckling points of the longitudinal spars extend in a horizontal plane placed through the center of the receiving grooves. As the result of this further development, the buckling axes for the lying surface are situated very close to the plane of the laying surface itself, so that, without the arrangement of recesses on the textile structure in the hinge area, a continuous covering of the frame can be achieved, thus also in the area of the hinge points. During the buckling of the lying surface, which can be buckled up to 90xc2x0 between the backrest part and the center part, because of the selected further development, no unattractive compressing of the textile structure will occur which, after an extended use, may damage this structure.
As a further development of the invention, the buckling points can be formed by hinge heads which each, in an alignment with the longitudinal spars, are held in the latter, are assigned to one another in pairs and, on their surface, are adapted to the profile contour of the longitudinal spars, for the backrest hinge situated between the center surface and the backrest surface, one recess respectively, which extends in a wedge-shaped manner to the swivelling axis and permits the swivelling movement, being arranged on the top side and, for a hinge situated between the foot part and the center part, in the buckled position, such a wedge-shaped gap is provided which is directed downward.
As a further development of the invention, it is now possible to construct the receiving groove as a slot, into which the edge of the textile structure is clamped. In this case, the slot can be formed of two adjoining parts which can be screwed to one another. However, it is significantly simpler for the receiving groove to be adapted to the cross-section of a rod, around which the textile structure is loosely wrapped and after the insertion is clamped in the receiving groove. This rod can in each case be divided into sections which each extend in the areas between the hinge heads.
As a further development of the invention, at least the longitudinal spars can consist of a hollow profile with a curved top side which, on the outside, merges into the receiving groove. This hollow profile may be made of a drawn metal or a plastic profile. However, it is also possible to produce the hollow profile from a correspondingly bent sheet metal strip, as the result of which, without any loss of stability, the weight of the new lounger bed and the manufacturing expenditures can be reduced.
In order to largely avoid problems when applying the textile structure to the frame as the cover, it can finally be provided that the textile structure is recessed at the corners of the supporting frame and is fastened only on the parts of the transverse spars and the longitudinal spars which extend perpendicularly to one another. This recessed edge area may, in a simple manner, be covered by a corner covering which is fastened to the longitudinal and transverse spars, so that an attractive appearance of the new lounger bed is achieved which is to be used instead of conventional bedsteads.
The invention will be illustrated in the drawing by means of embodiments and will be explained in the following.